National Security

A New Kind of Tech Job Emphasizes Skills, Not a College Degree

Publication:

The New York Times

Date:

June 28, 2017

The skills-based concept is gaining momentum, with nonprofit organizations, schools, state governments and companies, typically in partnerships, beginning to roll out such efforts. On Wednesday, the approach received a strong corporate endorsement from Microsoft, which announced a grant of more than $25 million to help Skillful, a program to foster skills-oriented hiring, training and education. The initiative, led by the Markle Foundation, began last year in Colorado, and Microsoft’s grant will be used to expand it there and move it into other states.

“We need new approaches, or we’re going to leave more and more people behind in our economy,” said Brad Smith, president of Microsoft.